Family Matters

A chatroom post seemed to suggest that troubled teen Tim Kretschmer had confided his plans to another teen nearly seven hours before killing 15 classmates and bystanders yesterday, but officials are now skeptical of the posting.

A local German official quoted the chatroom message as saying, in part: "I've had enough. Always the same. Everybody's laughing at me. No one sees my potential. I'm serious. I have weapons and I will go to my former school in the morning . . . you will hear of me tomorrow. Remember the place's name: Winnenden."

Whether the apparent message actually came from Kretschmer or was posted after the fact is still under investigation. No record of it is apparent on the gunman's personal computer.

Eight of the nine students killed in the shooting were girls and all three teachers were women, but it is not known whether this circumstance was intentional. After fleeing to the nearby downtown area, Kretschmer shot three adult males before turning his gun on himself.

Some early news reports say Kretschmer was known to have good relationships with his parents and younger sister, while other sources add that he "enjoyed grisly horror movies and violent 'shoot-em-up' computer games."

According to Reuters', Kretschmer had been treated for depression until dropping his treatment in September of last year.

"In violence, we forget who we are," said American novelist Mary McCarthy. If these words are true, we may be facing a generation of children who, despite the number of profile pages they may have on MySpace or Bebo, are increasingly missing a sense of identity.

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Gina Stepp has a master's degree in forensic psychology with an emphasis on trauma and resilience. As family and relationships editor for Vision, she examines the role interpersonal connection plays in ensuring human well-being.